Over a half century ago, while I was still a child, I recall hearing a number of old people offer the following explanation for the great disasters that had befallen Russia: “Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.” Since then I have spent well-nigh 50 years working on the history of our revolution; in the process I have read hundreds of books, collected hundreds of personal testimonies, and have already contributed eight volumes of my own toward the effort of clearing away the rubble left by that upheaval. But if I were asked today to formulate as concisely as possible the main cause of the ruinous revolution that swallowed up some 60 million of our people, I could not put it more accurately than to repeat: “Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.”

I spent some time at our neighbors party today. They are part of a group with special needs kids, and they get together all the time. My daughter joins them often. While I was there, one of the moms talked about how they took a girl to a male strip club for her 18th birthday last night. They pulled out their smart phones to show photos. It took a bit of time for me to get over the shock, after all, this is a group of people who would call themselves Christians.

Awhile later I visited with my neighbor across the street. She shared that while her college-aged daughter was studying at the local library in one of the glassed-in rooms with a male friend, this big ol’ dude came up to them outside the window, pulled his thing out, and started jacking off. Right there. In the public library. She wisely hung up with another friend with whom she was talking on the phone, called 911, and the dude was arrested.

I told the group of women at the party that I don’t go for any of that porn … that I’ve seen first hand the total devastation of that stuff, and I want no part in it. They quickly put their smart phones away. One of the women shared how another friend lost her husband to porn, and it was as if she was putting male strip club for women and men that watch porn on the internet together for the first time … that one is as the other. And then the conversation changed.

During the runup to Mother’s Day, I saw no small number of accolades directed toward mothers, including single mothers. Many were very heartfelt toward those moms who raised their children well. The inclusion of single mothers tended to be more generic, with the presumed intent to ensure that they were also included in the accolades.

During the runup to Father’s Day, I also saw no small number of accolades directed toward fathers, including single mothers. Many were heartfelt toward those dads who raised their children well. The inclusion of single mothers seemed to be generic, assuming that those brave, heroic single mothers were playing both roles. There were also no small number of passive-aggressive pot-shots at abusive fathers, “sperm donors”, and other manners of no-shows.

And yet there were no accolades directed toward those single fathers who–like those single mothers who are in that position not due to their own choices–also bust their asses to put roofs over their children’s heads and raise their children well.

Pardon me, but this is total B.S.

While I have seen no small number of shots at bad–or no-show–fathers, I’ve yet yet to see a mention of (a) those women who chose to sleep with those men and put themselves in a position of possibly having children with men they know to be iffy at best, (b) those mothers who abuse their children by shacking up with said men who, in turn, abuse their sons and/or daughters, (c) any mention of those single dads–who also wear both hats–who bust their asses to put food on the table, be there for their kids, and teach them well.

And yes, folks, those men are out there, and I would submit that they are far more plenteous than the no-show dads out there.

So ladies and gentlemen, use this day to honor your fathers. And if you have nothing good to say about them, then don’t say anything.

My dad wasn’t perfect, but as far as I am concerned, he did a damn good job.

Having a daughter in a 5A High School where strongly encouraging kids to go to college to beef up their stats is a big deal, and whose dad & family think life without a college degree is worthless, the topic of Higher Education comes up fairly frequently in our home. Actually, the two public school systems we’ve been in began promoting college at kindergarten, expecting kids to come up with plans for their future at very young ages. Public schools love bragging about the percentage of their grads who go to college.

Many of those who grew up in homes where college was assumed and expected cannot fathom not expecting the same with their children. I wonder how long it will be until this tidal wave of financial destruction catches up with them?

Oh, and don’t forget that for every year out of college, the value of your degree decreases. The half-life is about three years. Once a decade has passed, your fancy degree better be the exclamation mark at the end of an amazing resume. Otherwise it just makes you look like a burnout.

.

4. Aside from the degree, is the education itself worth anything?

Yes, but it is overpriced. Way, way, way overpriced.

The reason college costs so much to attend is because the schools do such a horrible job of keeping their budgets under control. That is their mistake, and it ends up being your problem when you get saddled with $150,000 in debt.

.

It is best summed up by the mantra from the Harvard education expert Tony Wagner that the world doesn’t care anymore what you know; all it cares “is what you can do with what you know.” And since jobs are evolving so quickly, with so many new tools, a bachelor’s degree is no longer considered an adequate proxy by employers for your ability to do a particular job — and, therefore, be hired. So, more employers are designing their own tests to measure applicants’ skills. And they increasingly don’t care how those skills were acquired: home schooling, an online university, a massive open online course, or Yale. They just want to know one thing: Can you add value?

.

Added Sharef: “What surprises me most about people’s skills is how poor their writing and grammar are, even for college graduates. If we can’t get the basics right, there is a real problem.”

I have to admit … mistakes happen, but poor writing and grammar drive me nuts.

People get rejected for jobs for two main reasons, said Sharef. One, “you’re not showing the employer how you will help them add value,” and, two, “you don’t know what you want, and it comes through because you have not learned the skills that are needed.” The most successful job candidates, she added, are “inventors and solution-finders,” who are relentlessly “entrepreneurial” because they understand that many employers today don’t care about your résumé, degree or how you got your knowledge, but only what you can do and what you can continuously reinvent yourself to do.